Cala Homes

Cala began building homes over thirty years ago, and today still apply the same guiding principles of exceptional design and build, meeting stringent standards and offering value for money in a wide range of sought-after locations. Elite are proud to support Cala with their Customer Care Remediation solutions.

Mr Cunnell - November 2019

"Superb. Ian arrived promptly on time. He quickly assessed the need & fully set up the site. The remedial work was efficiently completed & the site cleaned & restored in quick order. Ian was most courteous at all times."

Mr Gallimore - November 2019

"Great staff. Really professional & considerate. Best we've had."

Mr Taylor - August 2019

"Excellent! Excellent job & he was a very pleasant person."

Mr Moore - July 2019

"The men who came to make the repairs were excellent and couldn't fault them. They were brilliant and in terms of there cleanliness, they were great too."

Mr Johnson - June 2019

"Dear Andy and Paul

I wanted to write to you both to thank you for completing the VCL, insulation and blockwork pier works to my house with highly competent, caring and understanding trades people. I am just simply over the moon with everyone, their can-do attitude and work ethic. As always the finish they have achieved is exactly to the standard I was expecting – which is probably higher than most people. I have to pay credit to each one as they deserve the credit for their hard work in a thankless task which is achieved through their hard work.

Dan - He knows exactly the standard I was after and delivered that. He constantly kept me up to date on issues and details when I was back at work, calling me regularly to run through the day’s events, tomorrow’s plans and any exceptional things he found. He is a great leader which has translated into the finish that you have achieved – you should see the finish – it's amazing. Very knowledgeable in all matters which made the works run smoothly. I really rate Dan (which is why I asked for him). On the first morning I was running through the works with him while we were waiting for others and within 10 minutes he was totally tuned into the works – he knew exactly what needed to be done. Assigning tasks and delegating works efficiently which yielded a high standard of finish. For the week I was with him I really enjoyed working with him – totally customer focused also.

Martin (plasterer) has achieved a superior finish to the plasterworks. Extremely hard working and ensured that the plaster was finished to a really high standard. A lovely man – neat and tidy in his works. Took a lot of pride in his work which is perfect – stayed late to ensure he got the skim to a finish that was right. There was no rushing to get home – his focus was purely on finish. I really appreciate that outlook.

Jason (plasterer) was a real grafter and worked non-stop for the day we had him giving Dan a push. He came in to have a look at the works early as he didn’t like sitting in his van. That shows the DNA in Elite people – they all work relentlessly. There aren't many people with a work ethic like that!

Neil (heating engineer) knew exactly what needed to be done as he had worked on the heating system last year and he did it to the same standard as before – he knows exactly what I was after and had already planned out the works. He was so efficient in his planning that it didn’t delay any of the other works. He ensured that the boiler was pressurised, inhibitor installed and free of air locks. Also helped out others when they needed a bit of a hand on some of the works – another person that just doesn’t stop and is unselfish.

Jamie (heating engineer) came to help one day also as Neil was called to another job and he did a great job of reinstating the radiators. He was really courteous to Mrs J and asked if he could have permission to enter all the rooms to purge air and balance – really customer focussed.

Steve (decorator) did a fantastic job of making good all the damage that we created to complete the works - and you would never know you had been there. A hard worker that ensured that the cutting in and quality of decoration matched my expectation. He really did have to work non-stop the last couple of days as the extent of the works was substantial and I think he felt the benefit of the insulation being at the right level!

Steve (brickie) worked his socks off relaying the blockwork piers to the garage with a brick that was dimensionally inconsistent. This was a nightmare job but he stuck with it – he did it to the right spec and achieved a great standard of workmanship. When he finished he cleaned up his work area and then helped the internal team clean up also – again another person with a great work ethic and pride in his work.

John (sparky) is such a gentleman and pleasant. Can grasp all the wires and systems in seconds – I really don’t know how he does it as its like spaghetti but he does and he was always safe in his works – isolating circuits beforehand which is great to see.

Last but not least – Sam (H&S). Really good to see that smiling and cheery face on an important side of any business and work – making sure all the H&S systems were in place and the works were safe. Real backbone of a well run and well organised company.

I love the workmanship that all your team achieved on all aspects – I am the worst for detailing but they all achieved a finish that met my expectation which is brilliant. The work ethic is outstanding and they all maintained a professional approach to complete the works. Not one of them tried to blag their way out of anything which is what a lot of people do to simplify the work or provide a platform for poor workmanship. They all ensured that they delivered for the customer – that being both Cala and myself. I also have to thank Cala for ensuring that the works were procured with such a competent contractor. This is a job that was all about detail and finish and I suspect if another contractor was chosen on cost alone they could not have achieved the standard that Elite could achieve. It's an industry that you get what you pay for unfortunately and having trust in companies like this is worth a lot when you know they will deliver to a standard and approach that the Cala brand demands. This is really vital to maintain the brand you have (in my eyes). Thank you Cala.

I really embrace companies that deliver this standard of work – there aren’t many. Thank you, and indeed all of the team for your help.

I wish you all the best for the future – you are a great company."

Mrs Smith - April 2019

"I'm happy with the works. They were very good it looks cleaner than before. They were polite and tidied up once finished."

Mr Burns - April 2019

"We are happy with everything and would recommend Lee. Everything is sorted and all is now fine."

Mrs Mucklow - January 2019

"I am very happy with the door fitted. Your operative is a very good employee, he was on time and cleaned up once finished."

Mr Burton - December 2018

"The operatives that attended were very good, on time, polite and left everything tidy afterward."

Mr & Mrs Bott - December 2018

"The works are fantastic and a special mention to Keith as well."

Mr Lucas - December 2018

"Ah they were lovely the best lads we have had on site by far."

Mr Czerpak - December 2018

"All the works are good and we are happy, he cut the tiles to size."

Mr Portlock - November 2018

"I just had to call Elite to tell them how happy I am with the works that Steven did for me. He has done a wonderful job and I cannot thank him enough."

Messrs Festival Housing Limited - November 2018

"The works are lovely, he was on time and left everything cleaned today once completed."

Mr Perry - November 2018

"They did a cracking job, they were polite and on time. No complaints."

Mrs Harris - November 2018

"We are really impressed with application and the diligence taken with the works."

Mr Johnson - October 2018

"Dear Andy, Paul and Michael,

I wanted to write you an email to thank you again for all the help and work that you’ve done this week at my home. I’m really impressed with all your tradesmen that you’ve sent as they’ve worked non stop to complete all the remedial works to an exceptional standard. Not only this, they were all thoughtful, considerate and helpful in completing the work to my satisfaction. I’m probably one of the worst people for picking up so many defects and for having expectations so high but its been really rewarding for Cala Homes (through Michael) to understand the defects and put into place a contractor that has the resource and ability to do an outstanding job.I would like to thank each person as they are all a credit to Elite.

Paul has been a great leader in reviewing the defects and liaising with Cala and myself to complete the works - most importantly for arranging the operatives that can withstand my drive for perfection.

Dan (Elite Supervisor) was really good to work with & sought to understand each defect and complete the repairs. His attitude and approach to the works was the best i’ve ever seen. He marked out each opening that we cut in the plasterboard - he didn’t just dive in with his saw hoping for the best. He even asked me if i wanted the kitchen plinths packing out so that it ran square with the tiles - he is a man on my wavelength. I have to say that Dan’s ability to understand each problem and apply himself to solve it is something unique - he is a thinking supervisor….you don’t get many of those.

Gary (Elite Plasterer) was a real pleasure to work with. He understood my expectations and ensured they were achieved on all the insulation works and plaster works. His approach was identical to Dan - he ensured that the works were done in a professional and accurate manner. His attitude to finish at a high standard is appreciated.

Neil (Elite heating engineer). I add emphasis to engineer with Neil as he totally knew and understood my concerns on how the heating system had been commissioned. I’ve never come across anyone in this trade that can actually review a problem, had the experience to understand it, identify the problem and complete a remedial solution that actually works. Neil recommissioned the boiler in a textbook fashion. I’m extremely pleased with him because the performance of the boiler and the heating system has considerably improved. Lee his buddy was also knowledgeable in chasing out the airlocks.

Steve (Elite roofer). His workmanship, care and attitude in replacing the roof finish is textbook. He is a real perfectionist and hard worker. I never saw him stop and in-between tasks he would always sweep up. He just wouldn’t stop - not even the rain stopped him until it got torrential. If only every person had an attitude like this. Just an amazing approach in his workmanship and attitude. I also need to thank Andy Parton who i worked with on the flat roof. He’s just an amazing man - so much knowledge. Not scared of a task. He’s salt of the earth and just a great person to work with.

Steve and Steve (Decorator). Decorators are always judged on their finish by people who don’t know what they are looking at. They were absolutely committed to getting the standard that i wanted and in all fairness to Steve (from Olton) he made sure every bit of work was inspected by myself and reinspected just before they left today. You wouldn’t know the walls had been cut out so extensively and better still you wouldn’t know that they had been here as they moved all the furniture back to the same position! The attitude towards protecting adjacent finishes should also be acknowledged - they didn’t just dive in and paint. Their preparation was great. I also noted that the cutting in was better than when i purchased the house. Nice and sharp.

Electrician (sorry i couldn’t remember his name). He was such a lovely and charming gent. Again - listened to the issues and spent his time to resolve them very quickly. He also complimented my approach to LED’s which was nice.

Rebecca (Elite customer service). A face i’ve never seen but one i’ve spoke to several times. Probably never gets recognition for her efforts and i’m sure she deals with some real challenging customers. I also suspect the core backbone of logistics and arranging skips and scaffolding dates etc isn’t an easy job. So a special thank you to Rebecca also for her hard work and determination.

H&S (Elite). I have forgotten the ladiy’s name but an infectiously nice lady who wanted to inspect the works so that they were done safely. A difficult job but an important one and this is a reflection of the wider Elite leadership in ensuring that the company maintains high standards - safety. It was good to see her and to interact with her too.

Finally, I need to thank Andy for having a great business. Totally professional and honourable. A business based on strong and solid leadership with exceptional standards and staff. All of you make the experience of the business a great one.

I really hope each person gets a thank you from Cala and Elite. We work in an industry where every house has its own clerk of works - some think they are experts and get un-necessarily critical for no reason. Its a thankless industry. I do however hope that my thanks can be echoed back to them all - they deserve credit for the hard work they put in. Dan and Gary must have lost a stone each after going into the skiilings and Dan is probably dreaming of where every buildings warm line is…..I had some real good debates with Dan on this.

I am hopeful to have thanked each one but if i have missed anyone - please accept my apologies. I tried to write each ones name down.

I simply cannot thank you all enough for your help. Thank you Michael for sticking with me and for using Elite Maintenance - you have always said there is never a problem with them and you are right. In a sad way i’ve really enjoyed working with each of them this week and indeed on the previous visits. The attitude and approach from each of you is brilliant and i couldn’t think of any other company that could match this approach. Thank you all.

Regards

James"

Mr Foulkes - October 2018

"Both me and my partner have been back home today now everything had dried out, we went in and it was like no had been there at all, wouldn't have known they had been and all was back to normal.

The lads were lovely particular Paul and Gareth. Please send them my thanks and compliments. They even cleaned up the driveway after a few marks had been left. Can't complain about anything."

Miss Wall - October 2018

"I am happy with the works and the operative was lovely. I came back from the school run with my daughter and shopping, he waited so I could get her through the door before knocking on."

Miss Nightingale - August 2018

"It was a superb job my floors are no longer creaking."

Mr Clarke - August 2018

"He was absolutely brilliant."

Mr Grant - August 2018

"A fantastic tradesman. He did a good job turned up on time and left everything perfectly."

Mrs Norton - August 2018

"Couldn't fault the operative, he was brilliant and everything looks brand new."

Mrs Ashby - August 2018

"The chap who came was lovely. He did a lovely job, was polite and left everything clean and tidy."

Dr Cooke - August 2018

"I am very happy with Richard's works, it was excellent. He talked through the job and various options and was very polite. He also left everything clean and tidy."

Mrs Corby - August 2018

"He was brilliant, a credit to the company. It was a pleasure to have him."

Mr Christie - July 2018

"The operative was very efficient, he turned up on time and left all clean and tidy."

Mr Johnson - May 2018

"A quick e mail to say thank you for todays repair works. I’m really happy with the workmanship of your staff that you sent today - they were both extremely polite, professional and represented you to the highest level.

They listened to my concerns and completed the works within my expectations.

Really happy with Elite and all that you do - thank you again."

Mrs Hogan - March 2018

"The guys that attended to the floorboards were excellent and did a great job."

Mrs D Pike - March 2018

"Elite are something else, have gone above and beyond."

Mr & Mrs Roebuck - June 2016

"The best decision that CALA made was to appoint ELITE Maintenance to complete the repair works, who were absolutely brilliant. Andy Orme and his team of contractors were professional, knowledgeable, polite and considerate and made what was a very difficult process as painless as it could be. All of his guys were a credit to him, but special mention should go to Iain Millward who was on site every day, and planned the works in such a way that minimised mess and disruption for ourselves, but also made life easier for all trades.The works have been completed to the highest possible standard and we cannot speak highly enough of ELITE, and they are an ideal fit for repair works of this nature."

Mr Whittaker - December 2015

"Mark and Lee did a great job, very pleased - left the place like they had never been there."